th1ng Creates Tension for Vantage Point

th1ng creates tension for opening of Vantage PointAfter the massive success of th1ng opening sequence for Sweeney Todd in January, this Friday will provide an opportunity to see the award winning animation and mixed media production studio latest creative treatment with the UK premiere of new thriller, Vantage Point.

The film, which stars Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox and Forest Whitaker tells the story of an attempted assassination of the President of the USA , but told from the viewpoint of eight different witnesses.

The 50-second opener, which was created by th1ng title director, Richard Morrison and position’s, Alon Ziv, delivers a series of shots starting with wide aerial views of a Spanish city, gradually focusing on the presidential cavalcade moving through the streets, before finally reaching a close up of the President and his entourage.

Each amber-drenched view is cut into a stark black background, clearly depicting the different ‘vantage points’ of the witnesses. Further tension is added to the sequence by a swift transition of V-shaped stills, from one to another in the build up of the terrifying truth behind the assassination attempt.

Perspective and a set of different viewpoints create an atmosphere of something waiting to happen. This becomes key to the sequence building momentum. As the sequence further unveils viewers get an insight into a chaos that ensues followed by a collision of disparate lives in the hunt for the assassin.

The opening sequence was entirely directed, edited and composited in house at th1ng including all post production.

Richard Morrison, th1ng titles director, said: ‘ Vantage Point is a clever action movie and so its sequence had to be based around the idea of perspectives. We tried to create a web of intrigue to give viewers an accurate insight into what they can expect in the movie’.

Alon Ziv, th1ng motion graphics director, said: ‘ We have been recently witnessing a revival of title sequences in the film industry and this sequence echoes the mood and style of some of the more classic sequences we are familiar with’.

Vantage Point is th1ng first collaboration with the film director, Pete Travis. The film is a Sony Pictures production and th1ng executive producer was Dominic Buttimore.

About th1ng
th1ng is a leading animation and mixed media production company, creating commercials, idents and title sequences for film and TV. Th1ng is pronounced ‘thing one ‘. www.th1ng.com

Alon Ziv has worked with th1ng for more than three years, on a range of animation and film projects. Dominic Buttimore has been producing animation and live action for 22 years. He moved into producing at 20 and has run a number of production companies since. After 5 years as head of the 3D CGI dept. at the Moving Picture Company he founded his own company ” th1ng “. He has won many coveted advertising awards for his work, including D& AD, BTAA and Creative Circle . He currently works with 15 directors at th1ng creating commercials, graphics and film titles.